Camel Diary - Day 10

Today is the big day at the Lorora at Mparringon, cows are being slaughtered left, right and centre.

Richard and Musarini want us to photograph the proceedings, it is quite something big. We (girls) are only allowed in after the main killing, blood drinking and the carving of the meat is done, no women allowed. The men get the best bits, of course. The cow or goat carcass is left on the ground with the skin stretched over the top for the women to carve up the intestines, internal organs, head and tail. Every single bit is used, even the excrement is pushed out of the intestines so that they can be used for the old mama’s, I am told. Goats and cows lie on bunches of grass everywhere. Fires are started and kidneys, livers and other bits are being cooked. I am offered liver, the best bit, eaten first. Every bit has a purpose and a person allocated to it. For example, Lynne (an educated Mum here for her educated son) breaks the goat neck into sections and hands liver, neck and intestines to the old aunts.
 

 I glance into the men section and see a mountain of meat being cut up, astounding to see. You certainly can’t be squeamish in a situation like this or it would be too overwhelming. There is a huge fire being prepared in the men’s section, they are going to have a feast! The women put their small bits into their plastic (grain) bags for later. More and more men stream in, they are going to be eating a lot. I really would like to see what is going on there, but it is forbidden.

  There is one other mzungu here, an old German lady, she has married a Samburu man, a younger man. She talked about how the age difference has now become a problem; she has been here many years and left her life behind in Germany. They have some land and she grows/sells vegetables, she’s a bit cranky and hard to understand, mostly speaking German. Her husband is with the warriors so I don’t get to see him to make an impression of what kind of relationship they might have. She seems very arrogant as she tries to steer me around.

 

I chat to Lynne again who is uncomfortable pushing shit out of goat intestines; she is hot and sweating and says this is really not her thing but does it for tradition. She is with her extended family – her old father-in-law is overseeing things. They have slaughtered a cow and 3 or 4 goats. Her son, Kelvin, is in university at Nairobi, but is of the right age group, so he has come for the ceremony. Her husband, Samuel comes over, he is a teacher north of Maralal, again we have a discussion about the traditional ways (good and bad). 

In the afternoon, LeKuyieya, Koperi and I return to the Lorora, it is in full swing. There are 3 circles of Morans dancing within different age groups. The married, older guys are certainly not interesting – no decoration to be seen! The young men are all fired up, dancing and jumping. It is late afternoon and the sun is pretty fierce, initially I try to stay in the background, but a huge group of kids surround me, impossible. They are curious; they want to see the pictures, they jump in the way, aargh. I wish I had an invisible cloak! I try to move away, time and time again, some of the Morans get pissed off and run and scare the kids away. As the afternoon wears on, the Morans approach me for photos, posing over and over again. Everyone is constantly watching every move I make. Eventually I am drawn into the dance, as the dance pauses, two Morans hold hands, still singing, approach me and touch me on the head and whip me with their red ochre hair. It is a sign that they are interested, now they all have a go. I think they liked my reaction: laughing, with mock shock.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Musarini approaches again, and also Samuel & Lynne and family I invite them back to our camp, I am in a good mood so there is lots of laughing, joking and slow walking. It has been an awesome day. I am dehydrated and sun burnt again. And we only had 5 family planning clients today. Opps. Too bad!